The Rockologist: Why Paul Revere And The Raiders Belong In The Rock And Roll Hall of Fame

Earlier this week, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inducted its Class of 2010 in a ceremony at New York's Waldorf Astoria. As could be expected, this year's inductees — which included the likes of Jimmy Cliff, Abba, Genesis, The Hollies and roughly half of the songwriters from the old Brill Building — generated the usual howls of protest from certain corners of the rock and roll blogosphere.

Last fall when the 2010 nominees were first announced, a number of Blogcritics writers — including yours truly — thought it might be fun to offer up our own Rock Hall Picks. Amongst a deserving group of artists that also included The Cure, Rush, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Tom Waits, my own pick at the time was Alice Cooper.

So with the nominating process for the Class of 2011 now probably well underway, I'd like to submit another pick: Paul Revere And The Raiders.

My first ever rock concert was a Paul Revere And The Raiders show in 1967 at the old Seattle Center Coliseum. It was one of those old Dick Clark style rock and roll showcase of stars deals, only in this case it was being promoted by Seattle Top 40 radio powerhouse KJR, and its number one jock, the legendary Pat O'Day.

I can't remember exactly who else was on the bill (though I'm pretty sure Tommy Boyce And Bobby Hart and Keith Allison were there), but Paul Revere And the Raiders were the headliners. What I do remember, though, was being accompanied to the concert by my grandma, since at age eleven I wasn't yet old enough to go to rock concerts by myself.

Another thing that stands out in my memory was all the screaming girls. The high-pitched din was so deafening you couldn't even hear the band. Since the Beatles had already stopped touring to make records like Sgt. Pepper by the time I was old enough to attend rock shows by myself, this was also the last time I ever heard anything like that at a rock show again. By then, the teen idols of the early sixties had been supplanted by the "serious rock" of the Jefferson Airplane and the Doors.

That fact alone may account for the mysterious way the Rock Hall has, at least to this point, chosen to ignore Paul Revere And The Raiders. They were definitely a pre-psychedelic era sort of teen-rock band, complete with a ready-made teen idol in lead vocalist Mark Lindsay. That they were closely associated with Dick Clark-produced shows American Bandstand and especially the short-lived Where The Action Is likely doesn't help their case with Jann Wenner and the other stuffed shirts on the Rock Hall's board of directors either.

On the latter show, the Raiders were essentially the house band on a "beach party" sort of show filmed outside on location at what I want to say was Malibu Beach. Even there, with bikini-clad beach babes running about all over the place in the sand, the Raiders still wore their American Revolution-styled uniforms.

Oh yeah, that's another thing: the uniforms. These went hand-in-hand with the name as part of the Raiders whole American military history gimmick. Mark Lindsay even wore a ponytail to match his red coat, long before L.A. Record company weasels turned ponytails into a 1990's music-biz fashion statement.

Looking at it today in modern terms, the Raiders matching military jackets and boots certainly weren't any sillier looking than what Coldplay wore on the Viva La Vida tour. Even so, by the time the hippies took over rock, the Raiders were no longer taken seriously. What's harder to understand, though, is how or why this "bubblegum image" continues to linger today, or why it should continue to matter.

In purely musical terms, when you listen now to any one of the Raiders' string of hit singles from roughly 1965 to 1967, they hold up as well as anything that a band like, say, the Rolling Stones did during roughly the same period.

It was one hell of a streak, too. Starting with "Steppin' Out (#46)" and continuing on through "Just Like Me (#11)," "Kicks (Top 5)," "Good Thing," "Ups And Downs," "Him Or Me — What's It Gonna' Be" and beyond, Paul Revere And The Raiders were arguably the hottest rock band in America during this time.

The classic lineup — with Lindsay on vocals, Paul Revere on Vox organ, guitarist Drake Levin, bassist Phil "Fang" Volk, and drummer Mike "Smitty" Smith — was also one hell of a garage rock band. Paul Revere And The Raiders may have been unfairly tagged as a top forty, teen pop bubblegum act. But the aforementioned singles rocked as hard as anything by bands like the Troggs, The Seeds or The Electric Prunes. Even today, the Raiders' singles hold up remarkably well.

This probably owes, at least in part, to their roots in the early sixties Northwest rock scene, which also produced such noteworthy precursors to Seattle's grunge sound as the Sonics, the Viceroys and the Wailers. Paul Revere And The Raiders even had an early hit with a cover of the frat-rock classic, "Louie, Louie" — although the Kingsmen's version is admittedly better known. Bottom line is that this alone should put them on the radar of a Rock Hall board member like Underground Garage guru Little Steven Van Zandt. Or, at least you'd think…

Next week, Collectors Choice will be releasing the most complete anthology of Paul Revere And The Raiders ever assembled. Spanning three discs, and some 66 songs, The Complete Columbia Singles features all of the original A and B sides of Paul Revere And The Raiders' singles, as well as rarities like the jingles the band recorded for Chevrolet and the Pontiac GTO.

This includes everything from early tracks like "Louie, Louie" and "Louie Go Home," to the big hits like "Kicks" and "Hungry" (along with lesser known singles like "The Great Airplane Strike"), to latter-day hits like "I Had A Dream," "Mr. Sun, Mr. Moon" and "Indian Reservation." The three-disc collection also includes extensive liner notes with comments by Lindsay, Paul Revere, Fang and the rest, as well as other Raiders alumni like Keith Allison and Jim "Harpo" Valley.

This is a powerhouse collection that provides undisputed proof that there was a lot more to Paul Revere And The Raiders than funny suits and hats. The fact is that they were among the best practitioners of American garage rock of their time, and it's high time the Rock Hall took note.

But if the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame isn't listening — yet! — at least you can.

About Glen Boyd

Glen Boyd is the author of Neil Young FAQ, released in May 2012 by Backbeat Books/Hal Leonard Publishing. He is a former BC Music Editor and current contributor, whose work has also appeared in SPIN, The Rocket, The Source and other publications. You can read more of Glen's work at The Rockologist, and at the official Neil Young FAQ site. Follow Glen on Twitter and on Facebook.

i can never quote figure what the hall is looking for but for me, i’d want the inductee
to bring something unique to the table, so i don’t know if it lets these guy in. i say no.

on the other hand, some people are in favor of the monkees being in, which i think is nuts…so what do i know?!

http://blogcritics.org Lisa McKay

Hmm, I don’t know about this, Glen. I had a pretty big thing for the Raiders when I was in junior high school (and the prerequisite crush on Mark Lindsay), but I can’t honestly say I’ve given them a second thought since then (except maybe in a “whatever happened to” kinda way).

Just for fun, I’m listening to some on Pandora right now, and it sounds dated to me.

VoxMysteron

Steppin Out, Just Like Me, Kicks and Hungry – most bands would kill for a run of singles like those. Add in stuff like Louise, Louie Go Home and the original version of I’m Not Your Steppin’ Stone and you’ve got a pretty decent canon – certainly far more rock and roll than some of the current occupants of the RRHOF. However, there are still glaring omissions (cough The Zombies cough) that I’d want to see addressed before Paul Revere and The Raiders get in.

http://theglenblog.blogspot.com Glen Boyd

There’s at least a thousand different arguments for and against bands/artists worthy of induction into the Rock Hall. But I think when you compare “Kicks,” “Hungry” etc. side by side with “Get Off My Cloud,” “19th Nervous Breakdown” it’s a surprisingly close call. And it positively kicks the living crap out of the Hollies.

Funny suits and Dick Clark association aside of course…

Thanks for chiming in everyone…

-Glen

http://theglenblog.blogspot.com Glen Boyd

Oh, and one more thing…this one directed towards Mark:

The Raiders, unlike the Monkees, played their own instruments both onstage and off. Big difference.

-Glen

Fernando Barragan

Oh, hell ya their time is way past due!They hit the charts between 1965-1971 over 20 times. There are act that have been inducted with 1/3 that amount. They were not bubble gum, that’s a title given to them by the hippies that did not know how to catagorize them dueto their unique sound and look. They had a great hard sound with hits like “Just like Me” (covered in the 80’s)”Hungry” “good Thing” “Steppin Out”
They were the first Rock & Roll band signed up to Columbia Records and had the biggist number one in the history of Columbia in 1971 with their Number one hit “Indian Reservation” There sound is as fresh today then when we first heard them in 1965.

VoxMysteron

Glen, beg to differ, but I recall hearing that the Raiders, like most LA groups of the time had the Wrecking Crew and other noted LA session musicians playing on their records. However, Drake Levin and “Fang” Volk did play very well live.

http://theglenblog.blogspot.com Glen Boyd

They did use studio musicians from time to time (in fact, in their latter-day incarnation some of the studio cats ended up becoming part of the band). Hell, even the Beach Boys did that.

My point is, that the Raiders were very much a real band. No one was playing behind the curtain live (as was the case with the Monkees). They weren’t “pre-fab” I guess is the point I was trying to make.

Thanx for chimin’ in…

-Glen

Frank Elliot

Hello,
Where do I begin? The Raiders belong in the hall as do other groups. There are many reasons why they belong there of which I will list a few. To set the record straight, Little Steven has been trying very hard to get them admitted. In the last email I received from him he admitted he has all but given up because of the prejudice against them. Now to some of the reasons they should be in.
They were the first rock band signed to Columbia Records. Due to the extreme hatred for rock and roll by Mitch Miller who was head of A&R for the label they were not promoted nor did the marketing team have any clue on how to promote a rock band. It’s the main reason they lost the national hit of Louie Louie. In the Northwest they had the hit but the label dropped the ball on it in the rest of the nation.
Now to some of the things they did first and the musicians they influenced.
They were one of the first bands to use the double guitar. The group was always looking to new technology and that is one example.
Drake Levin was the first guitarist who used the crude recording techniques of that time to double track himself playing two leads on Just Like Me. Credit goes to their great producer Terry Melcher. They were a big influence on the Who. The Raiders were hard nosed,punk garage rockers. Before they even had a record deal they were so popular they had to play in armories for 3,000 to 10,000 people a night! This is with no contract. If you look at photos from that time you see a mass of people both black and white. Paul and Mark were huge fans of R&B and the rest of the band loved it too.
Paul used to buy a piano for many shows and would destroy it by smashing it,setting it on fire or turning it over. The other band members would help by hitting it with hammers or taking a saw to it.
If you are unaware of the Who’s history, Roger Daltry started the band but was the guitarist. He later became the singer. The band was listening and watching the Raiders because they covered some of the obscure R&B numbers they recorded.
The most teling influence was their cover of Louie Go Home by the Raiders which was the follow up to Louie Louie which few people are of aware of due again to Columbia’s inexperience with rock. The Who released it in England as Loubie Loubie. When you listen to it, you can hear Daltry patterning his vocals after Mark Lindsay. But don’t just take my word for it, listen to it on the internet and if you look at the book of 100 albums to take on a desert island, the author lists their album Spirit of 67 with Kicks on it and says at the end of his review-Listen and learn where Roger Daltry learned to sing.
Drake levin was a phenomenal guitarist as was Phil Volk an influential bass player. One of Drakes’s fans was a young guitar player named Jimmy Hendrix who attended their shows in Seattle and expressed his admiration to him. Phils playing was a big inluence on other bass players and he was featured in Bass Player magazine a few years ago.
Mark was one of the few artists that was allowed to produce his own band. This was unheard of in the days of company producers and large credit goes to Paul who fought for this for Mark and to the knowledge Mark learned from Terry Melcher a true studio genius.
I could name many more reasons but will save them for another day.
The problem for the hall is both politics(Madonna-name a member of her “rock band” and Grandmaster Flash) and what constitutes rock and roll. It is such a fluid entity that it is hard to say what makes it up. You could say there should be seperate halls for R&B, blues, disco, singer songwriters etc. but then it takes the craziness and divides it up into more craziness. Perhaps it should be changed to the Music Hall of Fame to recognize the many types of music out there and the important musicians who contributed to it.
To say, as a recent member did, that Abba belongs in because of all the records they have sold internationally and that he is tired of hearing about Kiss is disengenous—talk about selling large amounts of records and being huge internationally(besides their influence)! Give us a break.
And, if you are going to admit someone on the base of the strength of one hit and I love Percy Sledge, you have to take into consideration Indian Reservation, which from the time it was released until Billy Jean came out, outsold every single that Columbia released. That was a monster and made a huge amount of money for the label. That’s how strong that song was.
I am coming off my soapbox now but remember the context of the time. This was the era of the British Invasion and American groups suffered by it in terms of record company signings and the hold it had on the buying public. Literally and figuratively, Paul Revere and the Raiders helped shore up our native bands to compete against and like his namesake of old, help fend off the Brits. They like other important musicians belong there. I hope they do get in but even if they don’t I will always love their music and celebrate what it has meant to me. Long live Paul Revere and the Raiders!

http://theglenblog.blogspot.com Glen Boyd

Wow Frank…you said it better than I did. I’m truly humbled.

Maybe, you could forward my article (and your response) to Little Steven. Sounds like he just needs some fresh ammo to renew the fight.

Thanks for your excellent response to my article.

-Glen

Jim “Jazzbo” Austin

A rousing HUZZAH for you, Glen! This band started in 1959 and successfully transitioned the bridge from pre-British invasion white R&B to British invasion-type garage rock territory. They also successfully combined elements of early R&B choreography, a raw British invasion-type sound with those American R&B undertones, a distinctive visual image with the costumes,… AND pulled it all off with fun and zany showmanship and live performance gimmicks. They have been called the Greatest American Showband, although no one seems to even know what a 1950s-60s showband is anymore. And as Frank Elliot has said, the late Drake Levin’s guitar antics at the Spanish Castle inspired a young Jimi Hendrix to do some of the stuff he did later on. Levin and Volk (i.e., “the Twins”) had a great performance chemistry, too.

The Raiders had over 700 TV performances in the 1960s which in my opinion helped make “long haired rock music” somewhat more acceptable to mom and dad,….just from them constantly being pumped into America’s living room. The most dangerous thing about Paul Revere and the Raiders was Lindsay’s pony tail.

You cannot deny the music or the influence they had on other groups….from The Who to the Sex Pistols. History has seemed to relegate them to a contrived group like The Monkees but the Raiders were anything but, having honed their musical and performance skills in countless clubs, National Guard Armories, and small auditoriums during the early 60s. Fer cryin’ out loud, they were HUGE! For a couple of years in the mid-60s, they were hands down the most popular American rock n roll band around.

I was a little too young to ever see them play live in the mid-60s, but guys I have spoken to said these guys were the real deal and flat out rocked. The studio musician rumors are over exagerated, especially during the 64-66 peak hit making record years. It’s too bad that there isn’t any mid-60s concert footage around and the only 100% live TV performance was lost when someone threw out all of those 1960s Carson Tonight Show broadcasts (which upset Carson so much that he subsequently had all of his shows stored away in underground mines outside Kansas City). All of the other Raider TV performances you see either are all pre-recorded tracks with Lindsay’s vocal usually the only live track. Those kinds of TV performances were quite common in the 60s, but it only seems to feed the rumor mill in this age of 21st century entertainment industry skepticism.

http://timpanogos.wordpress.com Ed Darrell

Straight ahead rock and roll. Surely they are deserving of a hallowed place in Cleveland.

Frank

Thank you Glen for your kind words. I really appreciate it. Your page is great by the way. Thanks for the Little Steven suggestion,I will do that. My apologies to all for an error in my section. The follow up to Louie Louie was Louie go home. The Who’s version is called Loubie go home. I tried to edit it but was unable to. I realized no one would be able to look it up. The first version was really a 50’s kind of ramble but they remade it into a kicking hard, jangly song on Spirit of 67. Check it out.

http://woodnotwood.blogspot.com A Geek Girl

Good choice Glen. Loved this band. I loved the solo work of Mark Lindsay (Arizona, Silver Bird) and Freddy Weller (Lonely Women Make Good Lovers) as well.

Hard to believe they’re not in the Hall of Fame.

http://theglenblog.blogspot.com Glen Boyd

Thanks AGG. I have to admit I kind of got off the bus when Lindsay went solo, but I’ve always thought he had one of the great rock voices. As Frank so eloquently noted they influenced a lot of the Brit bands, and don’t get near the credit they should.

Thanks all for the comments.

-Glen

DevanG

I’ll bet I’ve seen Paul Revere/ Raiders 50 times if I’ve seen them once. From the late 70’s – 90’s They had one of the most consistantly “tight”, musically ‘hot’, and professional shows of any band I’ve seen that much of. Paul Revere and my band always seemed to be at Harrahs Lake Tahoe the same time, so I got to see a lot of their shows. Also, Paul is one of the funniest individuals you might ever run into. To put them in the same category as the Monkeys is rediculous. DevanG “The Tunesmith’s Apprentice”

Frank

Hi Glen,
I took your advice and forwarded our thoughts to little Steven. Mark influenced many vocalists. Take a listen to Go Insane by Lindsay Buckingham. Dee Snyder
recently said that someday he would like to meet Mark and thank him.
I just heard that the new Stone Temple Pilots Cd has a song on it, Huckleberry Crumble,that is a direct tribute to the band. They said that they purposely designed it to reflect the Raiders bass lines,guitar styling and vocals. That’s something special.

lainey

The Raiders deserve to be in the RRHOF for many reasons, but I think one of the most compelling-and maybe this should be pointed out to Mr. Van Zandt as an argument-is their place as pioneers in the medium of tv and its influence on pop culture. They were on for several years straight-day in and day out, or week in and week out. They had their own showcase in Where The Action Is. I know they weren’t the only performers, but they are the ones that most people, I think, identify with the show. I was in my mid to late childhood then, but I was a full fledged teenybopper by the time the “Happening” series came along, and if there ever was a show that was a microcosm of American pop culture, it was that show. Mark interviewed Hubert Humphrey on the show long before Bill Clinton tooted his sax on Arsenio Hall. They were the only rock group-in the true sense of the word-that were able to showcase their talent and promote themselves, successfully, on their own tv show. If you wanted to get yourself out there to young people in 1968 or 1969, then “Happening” was the place to do it. It was the precursor to MTV in many ways.

SSG Lew

Practically invented hard rock – always better live than on album – absolutely everyone knows at least three tracks they recorded WORD FOR WORD – if not the most influential AMERICAN rock band, definitely in the top three – bad Raiders (if you can find any) are still light years better than most other band’s best. I never saw them in the day, but I was at the filming of “Last Madman” – best concert, best fans (next to Cooper’s) I’ve ever seen/met.

Frank Elliot

Hi Folks,
Check out the new videos on You Tube from the MoonDog show. One of them is Paul Revere and the Raiders. Listen to Paul’s comments on the Hall. Great stuff.

Margy Fajardo

Frank. There are a few fools out there that speak out of pure ignorence and claim that The Raiders never played their own instruments. I wish they would read your comments or at least research things before making fools of themselves in front of the whole wide world!

Frank

Hi Margy,
It boggles my mind how ignorant people are concerning the Raiders. These guys were professionals in every sense of the word.
You don’t play night after night over three hundred days a year and not become better.
They quickly learned their way in the studio and by Where the Action Is and Midnight Ride albums were able to do their own creative stuff and play without having to use studio cats.
It was a learning process with Terry Melcher and they picked it up quick.
Mark became a true studio master and producer because of what he learned.
Just listen to Collage if you want to hear studio magic.
The drum sound on Dr. Fine alone still amazes me all these many years later.
An example of how big the Raiders were comes from a story told by Gary Pucket a few weeks back.
They were recording in a studio in L.A. in 1969.
In rank of importance was the Raiders in Studio A, Sly and the Family Stone in Studio B, Gary and the Gap in C, and some unknown singer called Janis Joplin in D.
If you know your history than you can always rest easy that you know the truth. And knowledge is the best response to an uninformed mind.
The Raiders were not only huge in terms of what they meant to Columbia Records but were far reaching in their influence. Peace.

classicraiderfan

Thanks, Frank, Glen and others for your comments, as it seems all of you were around when the Raiders were big.
The suit thing started out as a joke between Revere and Lindsay but caught on with the audience, and they were considered the American answer to the British invasion, so that gag stuck—everyone had a “shtick” then, many of the Brit groups wore suits and the Rascals wore the schoolboy shorts, etc. They were considered the hardest working group in show business AND they had the TV shows. When these journalists write articles about the Raiders, they need to first research their subject: listen to Mojo Workout, The Complete Columbia Singles, Spirit of ’67,and Just Like Us! at the very least, to get an idea of who they are writing about. So many articles critical of the group cite the “cheesy” costumes and the dancing onstage, but if those writers could comprehend that part of the decade and the need to stand out among so many who were fighting for the same buck, then maybe, just maybe they would understand. As for the RRHOF voters, you may be a lost cause.
Once you elect a non-rock act to the Hall, you have lost your credibility as far as the fans are concerned.

MommieOD

Glen, I just came across your blog and thoroughly enjoyed your article. I am a Raiders fan from back in the day, although I was also too young to attend one of their concerts in their hay-day. I sort of moved on to other music and musicians as I entered my teens, but recently got back in touch with my “inner-Raider” after seeing Mark Lindsay perform at the Happy Together Tour. I picked up the Columbia singles collection and listened in awe to the wide variety and quality of the Raiders output. I now have it on my Ipod.

In describing why their music spoke to me as a kid, I told my young adult children that they played, pure, hard-driving rock and roll. The costumes were just an extra. It’s the music that stands the test of time.

Frank, I loved your comments as well. So well put, researched, and thought out. The Hall of Fame folks could take a lesson from you. The only shame of it is that if they are, by some miracle inducted, it will have been too late for Smitty and Drake. Let’s hope that this wrong will be righted soon.

Triplet Tam

Hell, I thought they were already in there. Of course They belong. The reason for the prejudice is due–in part–because Mark Lindsay was such a “pretty boy” he was constantly on the cover of Tiger Beat and 16 which somehow took away from their credibility. But I know they were responsible for a lot of kids getting into “power rock”; the kind of music you feel in your toes. I am presently trying to talk some of my musician friends into starting up a club band with me doing updated versions of 60’s hard rock and Brit Invasion. 2 of the first songs we’d learn would be “Just Like Me” and “Kicks.” Perfect songs. Frank Elliot’s response was great by the way.

http://www.nusparkmarketing.com Paul Mosenson

Paul Revere and the Raiders should definitely be in. Just like the Baseball Hall of Fame did a few years back by inducting a group of Negro League players, the Rock Hall of Fame should gather a veterans committee and right the injustices:
Besides the Raiders, look up:
The Clovers
Wynonie Harris
Johnny Burnette Trio
Ravens
Billy Ward and Dominoes
Five Royales
Jan and Dean
Roy Milton
Roy Brown
Amos Milburn

Marielle

Where to begin …. I was one of those young girls who ran home to see The Raiders on Action each day. I printed ‘FANG’ on my French book cover to hold it up to my friends across the room – just like Phil did. My intro into rock along with all those others like me came from he Raiders. Who knew that fast forward 40 years later in 2006 I would become a pretty close friend to Phil ‘Fang’ Volk in las Vegas thanks to my husband’s performing career that helped our paths to cross.

Now, as in the past, my ‘fan-ness’ is no less strong. But to know the man, know the Talent, know the Artist it infuriates me that anyone would question or belittle this teriffic, history-making group!!!

colony1

Why PRR belong in the Hall. Let’s start with Mark. 1. Name anyone who had stage presence more than Lindsey. He could sing ballads or otherwise. 2. Levin was an excellent guitarist. 3. Volk provided a signature harmony for Marcus. 4.Count the top ten hits.

Rita GS

It’s a shame they are not there already. That huge Pacific NW Wall of Sound on songs such as “Just Like Me”, Steppin’ Out”, “Kicks” and “Hungry”. The truly incredible guitar work of Drake Levin on the early hits. Smitty’s intricate solid drumming. Phil Volk’s driving bass work. And Mark Lindsay’s howling sweet voice. This is great rock ‘n roll. I think the costumes and the multitudes of lip-sync TV appearances has set them back in the eyes of many “rock” purists. They should just listen to the music…

Peter Blecha

Frank’s input is mostly spot-on with 2 exceptions:

1.) The Raiders were not the first rock band signed to Columbia, even the the claim has been made many times over the years. Spokane’s Runabouts, for one, preceded them with the label. Maybe the Raiders were the 1st with an album contract?

2.) Though the Hendrix connection tale has also been spread widely in recent years, the fact is: he left Seattle in 1961, well before the Raiders performed here.

Karen Wilson Stepp

Well said, Glenn…. I just hope the Hall of Fame gets your point, and soon. The origianl group belongs in the Hall of Fame; what the problem is, I don’t get it. Like I said: Well said!

Mark

Their induction to the R&RHOF is way overdue. And yes, they had a great string of hits, but some of thier best stuff, their early R&B stuff that appeared on “Just Like Us,” and “Midnight Ride,” and earlier releases could hold up even now. Those were great tunes and mostly original!